Flotsam and jetsam (11/8)

• Fred Sanders comments on the trinitarian theology of Billy Graham.

He did, in fact, have more to say about the Trinity than most people would expect, and following the lead of what he said on the subject, it is easy enough to connect the dots in his practice. The trinitarian presupposition is there to be seen, just below the surface. Graham is a perfect example of an evangelical who is focused so much on being trinitarian in practice that he somewhat under-explains the theological presuppositions of what he is doing.

• Nick takes on Barth’s view of inerrancy.

For Barth error is expected of humans—it’s built into their fallenness.  From my point of view it’s simply a truism that humans can and do err but this doesn’t necessitate that they will or must err.  More on this in my next post.

• Denny Burk comments on the translation of 1 Timothy 2:12 in the NIV 2011.

One cannot underestimate the importance of 1 Timothy 2:12 in the intra-evangelical debate over gender roles and women in ministry. There is a reason why countless articles and even an entire book have been written on the interpretation of this single verse. In many ways, this verse is the most disputed text in the debate. It is clear that Paul is prohibiting something, but just what he prohibits has been fiercely contested.

• Five bishops have left the Church of England over the ordination of women. The bishops have joined the Roman Catholic Church under a plan that allows them to retain their “spiritual heritage.”

• James K.A. Smith has posted an “appendix” to Desiring the Kingdom. It’s actually a paper that he presented last week addressing some of the concerns that have been raised bout that book.

• And, Matt Mikalatos comments on the ancient art of Ferret Legging.

Ferrett Legging is a sport that originated in Britain, in which contestants tie their trouser leg closed, place two ferrets in their trousers (it’s Britain, people!) and then tighten their belt closed. The ferret must be fully teethed, undrugged, and the contestant cannot wear anything under their trousers. I read the wikipedia entry and laughed myself silly.

Flotsam and jetsam (11/5)

• N.T. Wright discusses women bishops in the Anglican Church again. HT

My own position is quite clear on this, that I have supported women Bishops in print and in person. I’ve spoken in Synod in favour of going that route, but I don’t think it’s something that ought to be done at the cost of a major division in the Church.

• Jason Goroncy points out some interesting articles from Sarah Coakley on science and religion. Quoting Coakley,

I propose in contrast that God is “kenotically” or self-sacrificially infused (not by divine loss or withdrawal, but by an over-generous pouring out) into every causal joint of the creative process, yet precisely without overt disruption of apparent “randomness.”

• Fred Sanders celebrates B.B. Warfield’s birthday by listing his three favorite Warfield essays.

The title of “America’s Greatest Theologian” is pretty universally ceded to Jonathan Edwards, and after him there is a tight race for “Second Greatest.” In my opinion, Warfield is a contender for that second slot.

• The Christian Humanist has an interesting discussion on heresy and the early creeds, specifically addressing with the early creeds alone are sufficient for defining what “heresy” really is. HT

• James McGrath is feeling generous. Head over to his blog to win a copy of Science, Creation, and the Bible and/or Constructing Jesus.

• Who would have thought that the weirdest ad I’ve seen in a while would be for a new Scrabble game.

• And, apparently scientists are getting close to making a real Harry Potter invisibility cloak.

Flotsam and jetsam (7/12)

• The Independent has a nice article on the continued tension in the Church of England regarding the ordination of women.
• If you still haven’t read Matt Mikalatos’ Imaginary Jesus, there’s a contest over at The Church of Jesus Christ to win a free copy. Go check it out.
• James McGrath offers a roundup of links dealing with the complex relationship between faith, reason, and evidence.
• Larry Hurtado has posted another article (does he have a whole stack of these just sitting on his desk?), this time on the ending of Mark.
• Jesus Creed has a short review of Hipster Christianity: When Church and God Collide that looks interesting. We have plenty of “hip” churches in the Portland area, so I may get this one to see what he has to say about hip Christianity.
• And, if you witness a car accident and it looks like the people inside the car have been horribly injured, apparently you should check first to see if they’re really dressed up like zombies.

Flotsam and jetsam (7/11)

• Matt Flannagan offers some reflections on three atheist billboards in New Zealand.
• Rod Dreher comments on the University of Illinois professor who was fired for having the audacity to teach (in a class on Catholicism and Catholic morality) that Catholics teach that homosexuality is immoral.
• C. Michael Patton explains why he decided to baptize two of his children at home in his swimming pool. Even beyond his rather low-church approach to baptism, I found his credobaptist reflections on how to determine when a child is ready for baptism to be particularly interesting.
• Brian LePort continues his discussion of Jon Levison’s Filled with the Spirit. And James McGrath is still working his way through The Historical Jesus: Five Views with comments on the chapters by Jimmy Dunn and Luke Timothy Johnson.
• In a shocker, the Church of England’s recent attempt to reach a compromise on the ordination of woman was unsuccessful.
• And, although I refused to comment on the LeBron James fiasco last week, I would like to point out that almost 10 million people watched it. Apparently they thought they had nothing better to do than invest an hour of their lives on this. Though I’m sure that if any of you watched it, you only did so because you were conducting high-level academic research.

Flotsam and jetsam (7/8)

• There’s a firestorm brewing in the Church of England over reports that Rowan Williams will now support Jeffrey John as the Church’s first openly gay bishop. At the same time, Stuart points out a good article warning about taking such reports too seriously.
• Justin Taylor links to an article by Vern Poythress that he calls “The Best Essay Ever Written on Spiritual Gifts Today.” According to Taylor, the thesis of the article is: “I maintain that modern spiritual gifts are analogous to but not identical with the divinely authoritative gifts exercised by the apostles. Since there is no strict identity, apostolic teaching and the biblical canon have exclusive divine authority. On the other hand, since there is analogy, modern spiritual gifts are still genuine and useful to the church. Hence, there is a middle way between blanket approval and blanket rejection of modern charismatic gifts.”
• Wired Magazine has an interesting article on the neuroscience of Alcoholics Anonymous and why their approach helps some people, but not others. (HT BoingBoing)
• Larry Hurtado links to an article he wrote on “Freedom in the NT.”
• And, Jim West has declared that he will bravely face the rigors of running the Biblical Studies Carnivals all by himself. So, apparently the Carnivals will return to the blogosphere on August 1.